Bayern Munich vs Mainz 05: Tiago Dantas could debut

It is no secret that Tiago Dantas is a special player to head coach Hansi Flick. Flick had watched Dantas for a full six years before persuading Bayern Munich to sign the youngster.

When Dantas was signed, Flick already was looking forward to January, when Dantas would be “eligible to play and an option for us” (Bild). At last, Dantas is now eligible.

Dantas celebrated his 20th birthday on December 24th. What more, as of January 1, he is officially eligible to play for Bayern Munich’s first team — and that could mean he celebrates his debut vs Mainz on Sunday.

Hansi Flick told Sport1 at the pregame press conference, “It’s always up to a player himself whether he plays or not and to what extent he develops. We have a good team, with good depth. It’s important that he shows his quality in every training session, both to the coaching team and his teammates.”

Mainz 05 is currently 17th in the Bundesliga table. Perhaps Flick could give his protégé his Bayern debut in a game that the club should handily win.